Feed mechanism.



W. A. LORENZ & J. MERRITT.

FEED MEOHANISM.

ArPLmATIoN FILED s112128, 1909.

Patentd June 18, 1912.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

Mw @W qlulnl W. A. LORENZ &'J. MERRITT.

I FEED MEUHANISM.

ArPLIoATIoN FILED SEPT. 2a, 1909.

Patented June 1s, 1912.

3 SHHETB--SHBET 2.

W. A. LORENZ & J. MERRITT.

FEED MEOHANISM. APrLIoATIoN FILED SEPT. 2s, 1909.

Patented June 1s, 1912.

a sunnite-HEBT a.

alore/zz'. L/w/v @77M UNITED STATES- PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM A. LORENZ AND JOSEPH MERIRITT, OF HARTFORD, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNORS T0 UNION PAPER BAG MACHINE COMPANY, OF PHILADELPHIA, `Pl'llNNSYLVANIA,

A CORPORATION OF PENNSYLVANIA.

FEED MECHAN ISM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented J une 18, 1912.

Original application filed July 10, 1907, Serial No.` 383,083. Divided and this application filed September 28, 1909. Serial No. 519,983.

To all 'whom t may concer/n.:

Be it known that we, WILLIAM A. LORENZ and JOSEPH MERRI'i'i-, citizens of the United States, and residents of Hartford, in the county of Hartford and State of Connecticut, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Feed Mechanism, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact.

specification.

The object of this invention is to provide automatic mechanism for feeding, delivering, kor transferring paper bags, envelops, blanks therefor, or sheets of paper and similar articles to various kinds of machines for folding, printing, or otherwise manipulating such articles.

An important feature ofthe invention is its capacity for accurately and uniformly registering such articles in the mechanism to which they are delivered, even though receivcd irregularly, or at different speed from that of the machinery to which they are to be transferred.

This application is a division of our prior joint application Serial No. 383,083, filed July 10, 1907, for improvements in paper bag machines.

In the embodiment of this invention shown in the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a plan view partly in section. Fig. 2 is an end view of what is shown in Fig.` 1 projected from the left hand end thereof. Fig. 3 is an end view of what is shown in Fig. 1, projected from the right hand end thereof. Fig. 4 is an end view n'vertical section take-n in frontl of and close to the feed rolls. Fig. 5

is a plan view, and Fig. 6 an end view of the lower feed roll. Fig; 7 .is a sectional side View of the lower feed roll, taken onthe line 77 of Fig. 8. Fig. 8 is a sectional end View of the lower feed roll, take-n on the line 8-8 of Fig. 7.

The lmechanism herein shown may be mounted and driven independently, or it ma be com-bined either with a machine to whlch the articles are to be transferred'or` delivered, cr it may be combined with a machine from which the said articles are received. This mechanism is herein shown to be supported upon uprights 52 and 53, which which the blanks are herein shown to bereceived. n

The shaft 62 is journaled inthe uprights- 52 and 53, and has secured to it'the lower feed roll 61, between which and its coperating upper feed roll 101 the blanks'are re-4 ceived over the plate 42 fromthe delivery; rolls 41 of the machine or other appliance:

40 from which the blanks are delivered to the mechanism of the present invention The mechanism to which the blanks are to f be delivered by the machine of the present inventionis herein represented by the cylinder l0provided witha gripper 11, by means of which the blank when delivered and gripped to the cylinder may be carried around to other mechanism represented by the rolls 12 and 13, for printing, folding, or

otherwise manipulating or operating upon the blanks. The cylinder' is shown to be mounted upon the shaft 15 journaled in the uprights 52 and 53, and driven from the gear 46 by a train of gearing, consisting of 'the gears 93, 103 and 17.

This machine is adapted to operate upon different widths and different lengths of blanks, and to that end is provided with vmeans for compensating for the said differences, retarding the longer. or faster blanks, and centralizing those of differing widths 'so as to deliver their front ends centrally or otherwise uniformly in register with the cylinder 10 and its gripper. In order to thus adjustthe various arts of the machine so as to receive the iiferent widths and lengths of blanks and ydeliver them inproper register to the cylinder 10, the gears 93 A.and 98 are adjustably secured to each other and to the shaft 62, being fixed in their adjusted positions by means of bolts 94 and 95. In the construction herein shown the bolts 95 (Figs. 1 and 2) clam the ear 93 permanently to the flange 96 o the s aft 62, lyingpbetween the gears 93 and 98; and the/"bolts 94 extend through curved slots in the` gear 93 and in the said flange, and are threaded into the gear 98. Loosening the bolts 94 permits the gear 98 and with 1t the gears 103 lanflggy? and roll 101 to be advanced or retracted^relative to the? gear 93, thus correspondingly advancing or retracting the roll 101 to the desired extent for registering its blank ripping portions with theyarious lengths o blanks to be delivered to it. The adjacent faces of the relatively adjustable parts may, if so desired, be provided with suitable graduations, by means of which the machine may atonce be adjusted, without experiment, to deliver the leading end of various lengths of blanks to the desired portion of the surface of the cylinder. Thevends of the shafts -62 and 15 may be squared, as shown at 60, and 16, respectively, to facilitate this adjustment of the parts.

It is desirable for certainty and uniformity of action in delivering blanks from the.

rolls 41 tov the common feed rolls 61 and 101, to grip the blank by the latter 'rolls before it is released from vthe rolls 41. Since the feed rolls 61 and 101 are generally required to travel faster than the roll 41, the blanks, if delivered directly from one to the other in the ordinary way, without any compensating devices, would be liable to become stretched or torn, or at least to be uncertain or irregular in their registration, `because of slipping between one or the other of the two pairs of rolls. To compensate for this difference in speed of the two pairs of rolls. and also for the differences in the length of time durin which the blanks are .gripped by those ro ls, due to their varying engths, means,are rovided for pushing back the front endo each blank a definite and predetermined extent, differing for each length of blank, so that the blank may be uniformly gripped at its front endV between the faster traveling feed rolls 61 and 101, before its rearward end is released by the delivery rolls 41, without causing any suchtension as to tear the blank or to interfere with its correct registration. For this` purpose the roll 61 is provided with a registering blade or finger 64,. which as the front end of the blank reaches the feed roll 61, pushes that leading end backwardly, thus bending or bucklin the tblank and providing an amount of slac ness equaling or exceeding that which will be taken up by the faster travelino' feed rolls between the time that they grip the blank and the time that the latter is released from the delivery rolls 41. A

suitable portion of the periphery of the roll l 1,029,760 Y I l 61 or the roll 101, or both, is relieved adjacent to the position of the linger 64, so as to receive and guide, but not to grip, the correspondlng portion of the blank, leaving it free to be pushed back between the relieved portions o the rolls.

The finger 64 (Figs. 6 to 8) is pivoted on the stud 76,carr1ed by the roll 61, and has gear teeth 75 cut in its hub which mesh with the teeth of the sect'or gear 74 secured to the shaft 65 journaled in the roll 61.. Oscillatory movement is imparted to the linger 64 during Athe rptation ofthe roll 61 by means of the arm 66 secured to the outer end of the' shaft 65 and held by the spring 73 against the stationary cam y68.v An antifriction roller 67 is preferably employed between -the arm 66 and the cam 68. The hub of this cam extends through, and is supported by the upright 52 concentrically with the 'shaft 62, and may, as herein shown, forma bearing for that shaft. In order to adjust this part-of the mechanism to blanks of widel differing length as'well as yto allow of adjustment for lesser variations in blanks of the same nominal len th, the cam 68 is made circumferentially a justable, the outer end of its hub being provided with a worm gear 69 (Figs. 1 and 8) which meshes with the worm 70 journaled in the bracket 72 supported on the upright 52. The shaft of the worm 70 is provided with a knurled knob or handle 71.' By turning the worm in either direction, rotary movement may thus at any time be imparted to the worm gear 69 in ...either direction; and the `circumferential position of the cam 68 be thereby/adjusted in either direction relative tfthe rotation of the roll 61. Obviously, this adjustment may be made not only while the machine is stationary, but also when it is/in motion, which will frequently be found of great advantage n u l e 1n making accurate adjustments under ac-` tual running conditions. In addition to thus adjusting the timing of theirnovement of the finger 64 relative to the rotary movement of the roll 61, the position of the linger 64 may be varied by loosening the clamp screw 20 of the arm 66. The shaft 65 and consequently its connected finger 64 may be slipped to different positions of its move- :ment shown by a dot-and-dash arc in Fig.

8, and secured in the adjusted position by tightening the clamp screw 20.

The forwardly projecting free front ends of the blanks are liable to be deflected sidewise more or less, especially when pushed backwardly, as above described. As a means j for registering the blanks centrally, or deflecting them laterally to any desired position, a pair of centralizing lingers 7 9 (Figs. 5 to 8) are provided, which are mounted for movement toward each other, as the blank passes to the roll 61, so that the edges of such blanks as Ymay be out of center or may require to be deflectedare engaged by .one or the other of these lingers, and pushed laterally .tothe desired position. These fingers are pivotedon the studs'. 80- carried by the blocks 81 held in the support block 82,.` which is fitted intoa recessprovided for it by cuttin away .a portion o the .periphery of .the ro l: 61, towhich it is secured.. The hubs of the fingers 179 are. provided :with

sector gear-'S83 which meshvwith theteeth fits between the two collars 85 and is secured -to the support 82. Motion imparted to the `screw 84 by means of the knurled knob 87 serves to draw together or separate the two fingers 79, the length of the teeth 77 permitting the necessary sliding movement of the sectors 83. .A check nut 88 secures the .parts in any dsiredfposition of adjustment.

The upperV eed roll 101 is journaled in the uprights 52 and 53 and may be of any ordinaryor preferred form or construction.

,It is herein shown as a suction roller, for

purposes peculiar. to the machine shown in the application of which this application is a division. The roll is supported at it-s right hand end by the shaft 102 (Fig. 1) to which it is secured, and which rotates in the bea-ring 104. The left hand side of the roll is provided with a long hub 110, which rotates in t-he bearing 105. The left hand end of the hub has secured to it the gear 103, which meshes with the gear 98 on the shaft 62. The hub 110 is hollow, to serve as a suction pipe 0r conduit connecting with the -pipe 114,' through which any suitable suction apparatus maythus be connected with the interior of the roll 101, reaching the periphery of the roll through the slots 113, made in the peripheral wall 112, which may. be made removable to permit the substitution of other plates or walls havin a different arrangement of slots for di erent purposes. The roll 101 is provided around one portion of its periphery with the presser feet 106, which are arranged in a series of pairs, one at each end of the roll, as shown in Fig. 1, each presser foot being provided with a spring 107. These independent presser feet pressing against the periphery of the loweracting roll 61 hold the blanks firmly and independently at different port-ions of their surface, in spite of variations that may occur in their thickness, due to being folded,

or for any other reason. The peripheral portions of the presser feet which bear againstthef-rollll are curved in substantial conformity with'the circular path of their travel; and they arepreferably separated only to a fsuficient-extent to insure their free, independent action.. Hence the gripping` action of 'the successive presser feet upon the blank is practically continuous.

Disposed between thev feed rolls 61 and 101and adjacent to the cylinder 10 is a deiiec'tlngplate 21, supported on the rod 22, whlch is. supported 1n any convenient way froml the adjacent framing. This plate serves to deflect the blanks from between the rolls 6l and 101 to the adjacentv surface of the cylinder- 10; and to enable it to do this positively, the cylindrical surface of the roll 61 is provided with grooves or slots 63, into which fit corresponding projections of the deflect-ing plate 2l.

The operation of the mechanism is as follows :-Blanks are passed through feed rolls 41 over the blade 42 to the roll 61. If the blank is delivered in advance of its proper position, its leading end runs against the linger 64, which pushes it backward to a suit-able extent, while the rolls 41 continue to feed forward the portion still gripped by them, thus creating a slack in the blank to varying extents, according to the length of the blank and its rapidity of travel. At the same time, or at any suit-able time before the blank is gripped between the rolls 61 and 101, the centralizing or lateral deflecting fingers 79 are brought into operation, and

centralize or deflect the blank to the desired position. The leading end of the blank is then seized between the presser feet 106 and the roll 61, thus holding it and passing it forward securely in t-he path to which it has been guided by t-he lingers 64 and 79. The leading end of the blank passing over the plate 21 is deiiected to the cylinder 10 and seized by the gripper 11, or is delivered to any other mechanism for printing, cutting, folding, or otherwise manipulating or operating upon t-he succeeding blanks.

The various terms herein employed to denote directions and positions 'are employed in their relative and not their absolute sense, inasmuch as any of the parts may be reversed, inverted or transposed in many ways that will be obvious to the mechanic or designer. The mechanism shown and described Vmay also be modified as to dimension, amplitude of movement, and in many other ways to suit different sizes or kinds of blanks, or to meet various conditions.

We claim as our invention 1. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a pair of rotary feed rolls for gripping and feeding the blanks forward between them, having a relieved portion to admit the blanks between them without gripping, and adjustable driving means extraneous to said rolls to enable the latter to be adjusted circumferentially to vary the position of the gripping surfaces relative to ,the driving means.v

2. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a pair of rotary feed rolls for gripping and feeding the blanks forward between them, having a relieved portion to admit the blanks 'between them without gripping, drivin means adjustably connected with the sai rolls to enable their gripping surfaces to be adjusted circumferentially, and a registering member coacting with the said rolls to retard the travel of the leading ends of the blanks and register them with the gripping surfaces of the rolls. j

3. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a pair of rotary feed rolls for gripping and feeding the blanks forward between them, having a relieved peripheral port-ion to admit the-blanks between the rolls without gripping, a registering member coacting with the said rolls to retard lthe travel of the leading ends of the blanks, means for operatin the said registering member, and means or adjusting the said operating means to vary its time of operation relative to the gripping surfaces of the rolls.

et. The combination, in mechanism for f transporting bag blanks, of a pair of rotary feed rolls for gripping and feeding the blanks forward between them, and -havinga relieved peripheral port-ion to admit the blanks between the rolls without gripping, a registering member revolving and coacting with the said rolls to retard the travel of the leading ends of the blanks, relatively fixed means for operating the registering member, and means for circumferentially adjusting the said operating means, whereby the time of operation ofthe said registering member may be varied during its revolving movement. v

5. The combination, in mechanism for transport-ing bag blanks, of a traveling blank carrier for receiving and gripping the blanks, a revolving registering member coacting with' the said carrier to move \the leading ends of the successive blanks into register with the carrier, a relatively fitxed cam for operating the registering member, and means for adjusting the cam circumferentially to vary the time of the registering movement.

6. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a revolving blank carrier for receiving and gripping the blanks, a revolving registering member coacting' with the said carrier to move the leading ends of the successive blanks into register with the said carrier, a relativelj,1 fixed cam for operating the registering member, means for adjusting the cam circumferentially to vary the time of the reg- "gripping the blank, a pair of centralizingl fingers coacting with the blank carrier and disposed on opposite sides of the blank, and means for moving the said fingers toward each other to centralize the successive traveling blanks relative tof/the support, prior to the gripping operation.

8. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag fblanks, of a traveling blank carrier provided with means forigripping the blanks, a pair of fingers mounted upon the blank carrier for movement toward and from each other upon the opposite sides of the blank, and means for moving the fingers toward each other to register the blank laterally of the support prior to the gripping operation. v

9. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a rotary blank carrier, means for gripping. the blanks to the carrier, a pair of fingers pivotallj7 mounted upon the said carrier, and projecting upon opposite sides of the blank, and meansfor swinging the said fingers toward each other to move the blank into proper lateral register upon the carrier prior to the gripping operation.

10. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a traveling f blank carrier,means for gripping the blanks to the carrier, registering fingers coacting with the fcarrier, and means for operating the said/j fingers to move the blank rearwardly 'and sidewise into proper register with the carrier.

11. The combination, in mechanism for transportingv bag blanks, of a traveling blank carrier provided with means for gripping the blanks, registering fingers vcarried by the blank carrier, and means for moving the said registering fingers to move the blank rearwardly and laterally into proper register with the blank carrier.

12. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of'a rotary feed roll, means for gripping the blanks upon the said roll, registering fingers mounted upon the said roll, and means including a stationary cam for effecting the registering movement of the said fingers.

13. rIhe combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a rotary feed roll, means for gripping the blanks upon lthe said roll, registering fingers mounted upon the said roll, means including a stationary cam for effecting the registering movement of the said fingers, and means for adjusting the said cam circumferentially relative to the roll to vary the time of operation of the registering fingers.

14. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a traveling blank support, means for gripping the blanks to the support, lateral registering fingers coacting with the support and disposed upon opposite sides of the blank, means for moving the said fingers toward each other to move the blanks laterally into register with the carrier, and means for adjusting the said fingers toward and from each other to vary the distance between them at their inner registering position.V

15. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a rotary blank carrier, lateral registering fingers pivotally supported upon the rotary carrier and disposed upon opposite sides of the blank, and means for moving the pivotal supports of the fingers toward and from each other to adjust the said fingers to different widths of blanks. A

16. The combination, inI mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a rotary blank carrier, centralizing fingers pivotally supported upon the carrier, and extending upon opposite sides of the blank, pivotal supports for the fingers mounted for movement toward and from each other t6 suit the different widths of blanks, and driving means for operating the said fingers, including a tooth gear meshing with gear teeth appurtenant to the said fingers.

17. The combination, in mechanism for transporting bag blanks, of a rotary blank carrier, lateral registering fingers pivotally supported upon the blank carrier and extending upon opposite sides of the blank,

means for moving the pivotal 'supports of" the said lingers toward and from each other to suit different widths of blanks, and means for rocking the said fingers toward and from each other, including a gear mounted for oscillation upon an axis at one side of and parallel with the direction of adjustmentof said fingers, and meshing with gear teeth appurtenant to the said fingers, whereby the working positions of the said fingers may be adjustedv toward and from each other, without disengaging them from their operating means.

In testimony whereof we have signed our names'to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM A. LORENZ. JOSEPH MERRITT.

Witnesses:

CHARLES M. FEEN, ANNIE LORENZ. 

